Would you buy a pup if ...

[cheesentoast]

... both parents are KC registered but neither has been showed? Past pups we've bought have all had parents who have been in the showring. The parents of this pup haven't. Everything seems above board with health checks, not a puppy farm, breeder recommeded by reputable source etc.

Thanks!

Showing isn't just about winning but getting valuable feedback on your dogs. You don't even need to be placed to be able to ask the judge their opinions, they're almost always happy to have a quick chat and go over what they see as the strong and weak points of your dog.

It's also absolutely invaluable for any breeder to see as many examples of their breed as possible in an environment which allows them to really study their conformation (not to mention get a good idea of their temperament) and get a good knowledge of what sort of features appear in which lines.

I'm not suggesting that dogs shouldn't be bred from until they're show champions, just that showing is an extremely useful resource that I would expect any decent breeder to be making use of.

When I was looking for a German Shepherd I looked away from show lines. I wanted a straight backed, long coated dog and wasn't going find that at Crufts!

Gosh, this thread has moved on.

Thank you all so much for your comments and views. You have answered my question and put my mind at ease. I now know that both parents are health checked, Mum is a lovely, gentle dog with a great temperment, the reasons for breeding are genuine, Mum and pups live in the home and the pups are oh so cute .... and yes, one will have a home here! 💕

I now know that both parents are health checked

Make sure you see all the official documentation for both dogs, the breeder should have photocopies of the stud dog's paperwork.

If their registered name you can look up a dog's health test results here on the KC site. Bear in mind though that some results (for things like breed club schemes) aren't always published there.

I'd also make sure they've had all the relevant DNA tests (or they're clear by parentage) as this is where a lot of breeders fall down. There are new tests being released all the time and the KC/breed clubs can be pretty slow on the uptake to list new ones. The best way to get a list of breed specific tests is from the laboratories themselves. I believe Laboklin cover most, though not quite all. There's a list of labs that do DNA testing here.

Aaaand as payment we require a puppy picture please. Don't tell me you don't have one!

Lol .... I was so caught up with cuddling them that I did forget to take any!